Giving Compass' Take:

• Authors writing for Brookings explain why dismantling racial inequalities are critical requirements in the recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

• How has the pandemic revealed deeply rooted inequalities? What are you doing to support efforts to tear apart racial inequalities in coronavirus recovery efforts?

• Learn more about why tearing apart racial inequalities is the key to COVID-19 recovery.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic’s massive job losses and amid a fraught “reopening” characterized by a rapid increase in cases, many public and private sector leaders around the country are nonetheless fully engaged in recovery planning. Their original mandate may have been to restore lost jobs and businesses. But the murder of George Floyd and subsequent public outcry for racial justice have ratcheted up pressure for recovery to address the deep racial inequalities that preceded and were laid bare by the pandemic.

By nearly every measure, Black and brown Americans trail other groups in indicators of economic well-being, mobility, and—most dramatically—wealth. Now, videos from body cameras and cellphones are providing the rest of America stark visual examples of how prevailing norms, institutions, and policies systematically devalue Black people and communities.

Fortunately, there’s now a window to act. Local leaders who are chairing, convening, or participating in the development of regional economic recovery strategies can use their positions of influence to demand that their places and people do better than “return to normal.” They can aim to rebuild better. They can leverage the force of public opinion, the private sector, government, and philanthropy to create higher-quality and racially inclusive local economies.

Pursuing a higher-value and racially inclusive recovery will take more time and resources than conventional efforts to restore local economies to their pre-crisis state. With growing public support for measures to enhance racial justice—and with COVID-19’s persistence further delaying a full reopening of the economy—local leaders have the mandate and the runway to unify their communities around this framework, mobilize investors (public, private, and philanthropic), and insure the right institutions are in place to implement specific initiatives. The moment demands nothing less.

Read the full article about tearing apart racial inequalities by Amy Liu, Alan Berube, and Joseph Parilla at Brookings.